The 8th Asian Film Symposium is back again! It's a highly regarded film programme that brings together exceptional local and regional independent films and filmmakers and includes “S-Express”, a regional travelling short film programme.

OPENING & CLOSING NIGHTS ($12/$10 students & NSF) from The Picturehouse at www.thepicturehouse.com.sg

ALL OTHER SCREENINGS AT THE SUBSTATION
($8/$6 students & NSF) from The Substation Box Office open weekdays from 12 noon to 8pm or call 6337 7800

Forums and talks
(free with registration)

Sunday 14 September | Opening Night

6.30pm / The Picturehousewith pre-screening reception

1) Kawaii / Taiwan / 2006 / 27min / Hsia Shao-Yu/ M18
Han, a taxi driver, lives a peaceful life with his girlfriend, Ya-Chi, but hides a secret. He has been looking for his missing fiancée who left him suddenly several years ago. One day, Han accidentally sees her in Lou-Dong on TV. He decides to look for her. On the way there, a Japanese and Taiwanese couple get on Han’s taxi and they all end up headed for Lou-Dong. In the meantime, Ya-Chi plans for a night out after she knows Han is going to stay out all night and she plans to do something crazy…

Hsia Shao-Yu has worked in the film industry as an art director for movies, TV series and a director for music videos and short films. He was art director for “Betelnut Beauty”, “Blue Gate Crossing”, “Twenty Something Taipei”, “Love of May”, “La Melodie d’ Helene” and “Exit No. 6”. He has also directed music videos for numerous pop stars such as Shuna, Elva Hsiao, Tarcy Su, Stanley Huang, Jasmine Liang and Ho Siang-Ting. His other film “Summer” is one of the Closing films this year.

2) Lovers on the Road/ Hong Kong/ 2008 / 74:36min / Jessey Tsang Tsui-shan/ PG
Lei and her boyfriend, Nam, have a big fight over an ex of his before moving to Beijing. Now he works in a design firm, and she wanders the city asking other outsiders naive questions: How long have you been in Beijing? What do you miss most? She hooks up with a loquacious Japanese who waits tables in a posh art market, and travels with him to Shanxi for Buddha statues. Will she bed him? Is she taking the initiative or will she let him? Tsang Tsui-shan’s debut feature observes a 200% self-absorbed young woman in perpetual transit, going from nowhere to nowhere.

The process of creation is like being in love; it is both joyous and painful at the same time. When I was writing the script, a crew member asked me whether I had ever been in love. I said no, I’m just writing a pseudo love story. What I care about most is what happens to the lead character in the end. Will she find release? Will she be able to forgive her lover? Our actions are often constrained by our environment, and we often dream about living in other places as a rebirth. Yet what matters most is the heart’s destination. Wherever you are, everybody has to face themselves.

A Night of Hungry Ghosts, Lim Chu Kang & their Documentarians: The process of bringing and marketing culture and history onto the screens

Join the directors of “A Month of Hungry Ghosts”, recent general release at Golden Village, and “Diminishing Memories”, general release at The Arts House, as they share their experiences in producing, marketing and distributing their documentaries. With these two documentaries released on two very different screening circuits, this directors’ talk is suitable for anyone who has an interest in finding distribution for their films.

“A Month of Hungry Ghosts” and a trailer of “Diminishing Memories” will be screened before the Q&A session with directors, Tony Kern and Eng Yee Peng.

1) A Month of Hungry Ghosts/ Singapore / 2008 / 99min / Tony Kern / PG
Every year, during the 7th lunar month, it is believed that the “gates of Hell” are opened and all the souls are set free to wander the earth. Many spirits roam around trying to fulfill their past needs, wants and desires. These are the “hungry ghosts.” This phenomenon effects personal lives, the society and the entire economy. The people respond as if the dead truly walk amongst them. This story explores how and why a whole nation, world-class and cosmopolitan, is utterly enthralled by “A Month of Hungry Ghosts."

Tony Kern - Director/Producer of "A Month of Hungry Ghosts"

Tony Kern’s works include narrative, documentary and animated films and videos. He owns a stock footage company TK Time-Lapse and decided to make this documentary on the seventh lunar month in Singapore and share it with the public, rather than let the 60 hours of raw footage remain unseen and lost forever.

Genevieve Woo - Producer of "A Month of Hungry Ghosts"

Genevieve Woo is a TV news producer-anchor with Channel NewsAsia and anchors the channel’s “Singapore Tonight” every weekday at 10pm. She was formerly a copywriter in advertising and a newspaper editor.

Eng Yee Peng – Director/Producer of “Diminishing Memories”

Eng Yee Peng completed her first documentary, “Diminishing Memories” in 2005 and the film proceeded to win numerous awards including the Best Tertiary Documentary at the Queensland New Filmmakers Award competition and Special Jury Commendation Award at the Asian First Film Festival. Prior to her studies, Yee Peng had worked as an Assistant Producer and a Studio Director with MediaCorp News for almost 5 years. She has since been working as a Director/Writer on programmes commissioned by MediaCorp. Yee Peng’s documentaries, Diminishing Memories I & II will be screened at The Arts House from 19th September.

Beng Kheng is the newly minted programmer for The Substation’s Moving Images film programme; The film programme which also includes other film festivals and programmes such as Singapore Shorts Film Festival, Singapore Indie Docu Fest, First Take, Reel Revolution and Singapore Short Cuts which is co-presented with the National Museum and Singapore Film Commission.

Growing up or growing old? Who are we and what are we? The experiences that form an Identity come from the various stimuli one is exposed to during their lives as they grow up. This programme puts together 6 short films that center around various environments that people living in Singapore will be familiar with, highlighting birth, life and the false starts in-between. Come revisit those lasting memory imprints that mark our growth pains on the slow trek to self-discovery.

1) Ceritaku Melayu (Malay, My Story)/ Singapore / 2008 / 17:12min / Shafiq Iskandar/ PG
From the semen of a father, swimming fast, moving forward, attaching itself from the egg of a mother, I am made. I whom have been in this bright cave, nine months long. Swaying my heartbeat thumping till my time has come. Tone of voice that shrieks from my tiny throat, no language, no idea of what is to come, I am suddenly Malay, made this way without guarantee.

Shafiq is a video artist who uses video art to expresses what he has in mind, which he cannot otherwise express.

Wesley Leon Aroozoo is an undergraduate majoring in filmmaking at the NTU, School Of Arts, Design And Media. His short films have been awarded and screened locally and abroad. He also dabbles in feature length scriptwriting and attained a Merit award at the Panasonic Digital Fiesta in 2005. His recent school project, an experimental film entitled ”Love Me Yesterday” is a Crowbar Awards Finalist and is slated to screen at the annual Q! Film Festival in Indonesia. He is currently planning his 6th short film.

Grace Teng is an amateur filmmaker who is too quirky for her own good. She has directed two previous short films, “Murphy’s Law” and “IV League”.

4) Reunion / Singapore / 2006 / 15min / Marcia Ong /
Reunion is a product of one person’s discontentment with the kinds of conversations that take place around the dinner table. Based on real-life banter among relatives, Reunion is not your conventional plot-driven short film. Instead, it is a snap-shot of the Wang family’s Chinese new year reunion dinner. Even though the characters in Reunion span three generations and carry myriad personalities, viewers will be astonished by the mundane and superficial dialogue that takes place between them.

Marcia Ong is currently pursuing her MFA in Cinema at San Francisco State University. She has written and directed 2004's Silver Screen finalist "Yellow" in the Singapore International Film Festival and was the line producer for the feature film "S-11" that was screened at the Toronto International Film Festival. Her other film, "Kristy" has been screened at the San Francisco International Children's Film Festival 2008 and accepted to a number of festivals including the Reel Women International Film Festival '08, Miami Gay and Lesbian Film Festival '08, and Kids First! Film Festival '08.

The Dream is a short film about one’s dream, a dream within a nightmare, blurred between the line of fantasy and reality. While the protagonist is studying frantically just the night before his chemistry exam, he unknowingly dozes off and starts to dream of himself in a classroom taking the chemistry test paper. What follows is the worst night of his life – as he realizes that he had fallen asleep during the test!

Zhu Chuan was born in 1990 in Singapore and is currently a student at Hwa Chong Institution. It was during his years in the Art Elective Programme in secondary school where he discovered his love for art and movies. Since then, he has created several short films and animations, and has directed and shot various videos for the school.

6) Michelle / Singapore / 2008 / 9min / Ting Szu Kiong / PG
Michelle walks in the streets of Chinatown alone admiring couples and children. She arrives at the beach to weep. Is her wish to be an ordinary woman possible?

Malaysian-born Szu Kiong attended film courses in Objectifs and Media Academy. “My Keys” and “Michelle” are his first two short films that are supported by the Singapore Film Commission. Besides, he uses his mobile phone to capture videos of things he encounters and edits them into short films. These mini projects can be viewed on YouTube.

S-Express: Malaysia

Curated by: Amir Muhammad

A writer and independent filmmaker based in Kuala Lumpur. He has been writing for the Malaysian print media since the age of 14. In 2000, he wrote and directed Malaysia’s first DV feature, and his works have been featured in many international film festivals including Sundance and Berlin. He has also helped produce several other Malaysian DV movies.

1) Blue Roof / Malaysia / 2007 / 14min / Woo Ming Jin /
Albert is a security guard but one day he messes up on the job. Does the blue roof hold the answer?

San Diego-trained Woo Ming Jin is an award-winning filmmaker whose feature films include “The Elephant and the Sea” and “Monday Morning Glory”. This year he received a script grant from the Pusan Film Festival for his next feature, “Woman on Fire Looks for Water”.

2) Four Shorts by Akashdeep Singh / Malaysia / 2006 / 7min / Akashdeep Singh/
What do you have to do to get some service around here?

1. THE WAIT / 2006 / 7 min / Malaysia /

What do you have to do to get some service around here?

2. THE DOOR / 2006 / 5 min / Malaysia /

Two siblings worry if something happened to their mother. Is there a secret behind the door? Featuring performances by Mohd Syafie Naswip and Adibah Noor, both of whom are in the feature film “Mukhsin”.

3. RODA-RODA / 2007 / 2 min / Malaysia /

Something seen outside the car window puts the journey in a different perspective.

4. TOOTA / 2008 / 3 min / Malaysia /

A minimalist video-essay that somehow evokes divine grace.

Akashdeep Singh is an award-winning editor for feature films. He is also working on his feature directorial debut, “Hassan”.

3) 10 Tahun Sebelum Merdeka (10 Years Before Independence) / Malaysia / 2007 / 32min / Fahmi Reza
Who says socialism doesn’t work? This guerrilla documentary brings us back to the successful nationwide hartal organised by left-wing groups in Malaya in 1947. Rather than a stuffy period piece, the gonzo video employs cutting-edge editing and a punk soundtrack.

Fahmi Reza is a freelance artist. This is his first documentary. He recently completed another one, to mark 60 years since the advent of the Emergency.

Chalida studied film at Thammasat University and film archiving from the University of East Anglia,UK. She is currently working as the project director of the Thai Film Foundation and has supported independent film through the Thai Short Film and Video Festival, which she has served as Festival Director since 1997. Chalida has also been the Festival Director of the Bangkok Children's Film Festival since 2006.

3) The Invisible City / Thailand / 2007 / 12min /
Boonsri Tangtrongsin / PG
Once upon a time, an organist plays at a funeral. While playing his favorite funeral song, the world around him becomes invisible. A cat nearby also gets sucked into this same invisible world. However, the organist and the cat react to the invisible world differently. The viewer will be able to understand the situation only by seeing the movement of the man and the cat. Meanwhile, the town faces an epidemic and its people continue to die. The organist continues singing his song for the victims while the cat tries to follow the sound of the song without seeing him.

4) Shan at the Dawn / Thailand / 2008 / 29:30min /
Nattachai Jaitita / PG
For 60 years, civil war reigned in Burma. The government aimed to expand their territory, by pillaging minority villages, raping their women, dishonoring them with tremendous shame and grief. Many minorities include Chan, had to flee from their birthplace and take refuge in Doi Tai Lang, the main base of the Tai-Yai freedom militia. They will grab their weapons and use their wits to protect their beloved family by any means. For they have aim only one goal… The freedom of the Tai Yai Kingdom…

S-Express: Indonesia

Curated by:
Varadila Nurdin

All the arms we need are for hugging - anonymous

Big war, small war: these short films present different kinds of fights for power, guarding belief and keeping dignity. From corny city gangs to proud clans, mere competition risk ending up in blind nationalism. Don't we know that all the arms we need are for hugging?

1) Harap Tenang Ada Ujian! (Be Quiet, Exam is in Progress!) / Indonesia / 2006 / 15min /
Ifa Ifansyah
/ PG An earthquake on May 27, 2006 that killed more than 6,000 people in Yogyakarta, occurred exactly 10 days before the elementary school examinations and 14 days before the World Cup.

In 2007, Ifa Isfansyah graduated from the Indonesian Institute of Arts, Yogyakarta. Along with some friends, he initiated a film community named fourcolours films and began to produce short films. In 2006, Ifa received a scholarship from Im Kwon Taek College of Film and Performing Arts, Korea. At present, Ifa resides in Pusan, South Korea. Ifa is currently preparing his first feature “One Day When the Rain Falls”.

2) Kalah atau Menang (Lose or Win) / Indonesia / 2005 / 9min /
Donny Prasetyo Utomo
/ PG
Markun and Jarkin put a bet that the one who loses must not only clean the neighbourhood but also the Codet River, which runs through the entire town. Who will win?

Even while in high school, Donny had finished several scripts for both short and feature length films. Some of the scripts that have been produced are “Nianta”, “Lose or Win” and “Die Virgin in the Middle of the Night”. Donny also did music videos and was mentor/tutor for a number of audio/visual workshops. He passed away on 17 January 2008.

3) Still Life / Indonesia / 2006 / 7min /
Ariani Darmawan & Hosanna Heinrich
/ PG
Four women of different nationalities are fighting over their own dignities. In a sane world, this piece would be called, Still Stupidity.

Ariani Darmawan is a video artist/filmmaker who lives and works in Bandung, Indonesia. She studied Fine Arts at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago after finishing her bachelor degree in Architecture at the Parahyangan Catholic University, Bandung. The architecture's programmatic versus fine art's impressionistic methods of thinking had brought her to a world of writing and moving images. Darmawan has participated in numerous festivals and art exhibitions in Europe, North America, Australia and Asia with works ranging from short films, documentary to video installations and theatrical works.

4) Trophy Buffalo / Indonesia / 2007 / 19min /
Vanni Jamin
/
In the high plains of West Sumatra, two feuding families strive to uphold family honor and pride in the arena of buffalo fights. But they begin to change when Pandi, a boy of nine years, begins to question his family tradition.

Vanni Jamin holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance from Georgetown University and a Bachelor of Arts in Visual Communications degree from l’Universite Americaine de Paris. She was also one of the selected American University graduate film students to study at FAMU Foreign Student Program in Prague, Czech Republic. The short film she made in Prague, “Mouse’s Trap”, was screened in 2002 at Gedung 28 in Jakarta, Indonesia and in 2003 at the US ASEAN Film and Photography Festival in Washington, D.C., USA. Recently in 2004, Vanni received her Master’s of Fine Arts degree from American University in Washington, D.C.

In this producer’s workshop, Kelvin Sng will share his experiences working as producer for three very different short films with three very different directors. Join us for an afternoon with the producer, Kelvin Sng and his three directors, Chai Yee-Wei of the truly independent short film, “My Blue Heaven”, Ivy Lee of the Singapore Hong-Kong co-production, “Together” and Yeap Mei Yi of the student hall film production, “The Forgotten”. Three very different beasts handled by the same producer and how he produced them all.

The session will start with a producer’s workshop by Kelvin Sng followed by the screening of “My Blue Heaven” and “Together”, with a trailer of “The Forgotten”. Ending the session will be a post-screening Q&A with producer Kelvin Sng and directors Chai Yee-Wei, Ivy Lee and Yeap Mei Yi.

Kelvin Sng – Producer

Kelvin’s short films have traveled internationally in various film festivals to critical acclaim. He has also been actively involved in countless film productions, particularly in the areas of writing, directing and producing In 2006, he was awarded the Script Development Grant by the Singapore Film Commission to develop “More Than Words”, an extension of his 2005 short film of the same title, into a full-length screenplay. The feature film project has since gone on to be presented by the Media Development Authority (MDA) at Marche Du Film of the 60th Cannes Film Festival and will begin production in 2009 under Neo Studios, headed by celebrity director Jack Neo.

In 2008, in the midst of developing “More Than Words”, Kelvin managed to churn out 3 short films, namely “My Blue Heaven” (Independent production), “Together” (Co-production with Hong Kong Baptist University) and “The Forgotten” (Student production with NUS Eusoff Hall), primarily as Producer and Executive Producer.

Kelvin is an Associate Artist of The Substation.

My Blue Heaven / 2008 / 19:40min / Singapore / Chai Yee-Wai

A homage to old HDB flats and the age of the VCR. Ah Boy watches a porn videotape which gets stuck! Bad news – his father is on the way home. A no hold’s barred short story that encapsulates all the ugly things that the government tries so hard to erase or suppress – porn, drugs, agues (pondans), racial conflicts and the use of dialect.

Chai Yee-Wei has written and directed several award-winning short films since 2005. In 2005, “Lau Sai” (Diarrhoea) won the Panasonic MDA Digital Film Fiesta Merit Award in the Open Category. Then “Loser” went on to win Judges’ Pick in Fly-by-Night 2005. In 2006-2007, “Blood Ties” won 3rd Prize in the 2nd Panasonic MDA Digital Film Fiesta competition, 2nd Prize in the Rebel Planet of Hollywood Short Film Fest in the Horror Category, and went on to screen in many film festivals around the world, including Beijing, Vancouver, London, Los Angles, New York, etc.

“My Blue Heaven” is Yee-Wei’s 4th short film since 2005, and he is scheduled to shoot “Blood Ties – The Feature” with Oask3 Productions in late 2008.

Together / 2008 / 30:23min / Singapore / Ivy Lee
Bee’s boyfriend QQ insists on spending the Christmas holidays at her home. However, Bee, who finds her family an embarrassment, does not want QQ to meet her ugly family. She conjures up all sorts of funny ideas to chase her family away. However, QQ turns out to be a cheat...

Many young people today have placed their love relationship prior to kinship. “Together” is a short film that reminds everyone the importance of family, and there is no place like home.

Ivy Lee received her Master of Fine Arts (Film, TV and digital Media) at the Hong Kong Baptist University in 2008. “Together” is her final year film project that unites her teachers and classmates in Hong Kong together with film students from various polytechnics in Singapore. The film is also a co-production with Ad Infinitum Films, headed by filmmaker Kelvin Sng.

It’s all about money, money, money. Where to find it? How to find it? And who to look for to get it? Paneled by the S-Express film curators and guest filmmakers from around the region, the forum aims to provide insights into the film funding models and film investment environments of the different countries in Asia. So join us in sneaking a peep into our neighbors’ piggy banks to see how they find their funding.

Maggie Lee is the Asia Head Reviewer for The Hollywood Reporter. She is also an associate curator for The Substation, programming for the independent Chinese films segment for S-Express - a touring festival of Asian short films. She worked for the editorial and programming sections of the Tokyo International Film Festival (Winds of Asia), the Shorts Shorts Film Festival Asia in Japan, the Hong Kong International Film Festival and the Hong Kong Film Archive.

1) Ten Years / China / 2007 / 10min / Jia Zhangke/ PG
A train traverses spring and summer, passing through the city and open fields in China; the faces of the passengers are the most ordinary faces in China. Two womens meet each other on the train every day, but they never converse. During the SARS period, they sit together and look at each other.

Jia Zhang Ke graduated from the Beijing Film Academy and his films, "Zhan Tai" (Platfrom) and "Ren Xiao Yao" (Unknown Pleasures) have been selected in competition in Venice and Cannes. His most recent film "Still Life" received the Golden Lion Award at the Venice International Film Festival 2006. Jia also established Xstream Pictures in 2003 to promote young talented directors from China.

2) Black Pig, White Pig / China / 2005 / 5min / Zhang Gong / NC16 (some gore)
Since time begun, people of power rose to success and tumbled into failure; taking their turns on stage. History has always repeated itself; cyclic, in different forms.

Zhang Gong completed his Masters in Graphic Design and Artistic Creativity from the China Central Academy of Arts and Design, where he went on to teach as an assistant professor. His main areas of study include animated art films and contemporary paintings. His drawings have traveled to numerous exhibitions in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Germany, Belgium and he has been making animated films since 2002.

Wang Wo graduated from Tsinghua University Academy of Arts and Design, previously known as the Central Academy of Arts and Design. His first documentary was "Ourside" abd "Noise" is his second documentary.

Christy Chang was born in 1986, Taiwan. She majored in Commercial design at NTUST and is interested in design and animation.

5) Father's Finger / Taiwan / 2007 / 15min / Yang Shih-Yi / PG
My dad has never held my hand for as long as I can remember. We have, somehow, always kept a distance from each other. He has a missing finger; one palm with only four fingers, it is hard to ignore and I never dared ask about it. The thought of that lost finger haunts me endlessly and I thought about all the jobs he had ever taken. "Perhaps a piece of his soul had fled with that finger," I though... "They maybe waiting somewhere, hoping to meet his other pieces, or maybe not." With each passing day, my dad grows older; his health deteriorates and I decide to learn to hold my dad's hands.

Yang Shih-Yi is currently studying at the Graduate School of Applied Media Arts, National Taiwan University of Art.

6) The Landscape Tour / Taiwan / 2008 / 2min / Ma Kuang Pei /G
The scenery of the landscape expands slowly like a reel picture, each scene an emotional tale, like reading a lover's discourse of nature. Traveling through the mountains, you would see the living mountains kissing and the hills crying for the lonely.

Ma Kuang Pei is current studying at the Graduate Institute of Sound and Image Studies in Animation, Tainan National University of the Arts.

Jane likes Tracy. Jane does not like Vincent
"Summer Afternoon" unfolds in real time with two lovers playing a joke on the girl in the backseat. But once the car stops, an afternoon drive in the country takes a wrong turn as the girl in the backseat now controls the fun.

Born and raised in Malaysia, Wi Ding Ho, graduated from New York University film school and works as a TV commercial director in Taiwan. His previous short film "Respire" premiered at the International Critics' Week of the Cannes Film Festival in 2005 and garnered two awards - The Kodak Discovery award for best short film and the TV5 Young critics' award. The film also won the best fantasy short film award at the SITGES Fantasy film festival and special jury award at the Taipei International Film Festival. He is currently preparing his feature debut "Pinoy Sunday".

*Awards: Selected for the Director's Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival 2008.

As the possibility of making low-budget Digital features becomes easier in the Philippines, fine short films are becoming a rarity (with the possible exception of the films of Milo Tolentino). Chosen to screen, as a result, are two medium length films: “Childhood in the Philippines Islands, undated.” by Raya Martin and “Bontoc Eulogy” by Marlon Fuentes.

With a mixture of anger and tenderness, “Bontoc Eulogy” narrates the fate of Markod, a ‘Filipino savage’ exhibited at the St. Louis World Fair of 1904. With poetic imagery, Raya Martin’s silent “Infancia” (a little seen, early, much different version of “A Short Film About the Indio Nacional” made 10 years after “Bontoc”) envisions the life of a child during the last days of an earlier colonial period; the Spanish Occupation.

Images. Ideas. History. Screening together for the first time, these two works put forth ideas on how to present the three.

1) Infancia en las Islas de Filipinas, sin fecha (Childhood in the Philippines Islands, undated) / Philippines / 2005 / 30min / Raya Martin / PG
The bellringer of the town church is a young indio, torn between his duties to the Spanish state and as a Filipino. His conflicted mind, contemplates his own existence, is seen through different situations: experiencing an eclipse, an encounter with the Sto. Niño, and the death of a child in his town.

2) Bontoc Eulogy / Philippines / 1995 / 57min / Marlon Fuentes / PG
A personal story about the Filipino experience at the St. Louis World's Fair of 1904, the film unfolds from the perspective of two characters, the Narrator, a Filipino immigrant in America, and Markod, an Igorot warrior held captive at the Fair. It chronicles Markod's experience, as one of the 1,100 natives brought to America to be part of the "Philippine Reservation." The St. Louis Fair was the site of the largest "ethnological display rack" the world had ever known, a place where thousands of "primitive" men and women from all over the globe were displayed side by side with the artifacts and monuments of Western scientific progress and civilization.

As a "documentary" that locates itself deeply in the fractures between historical truths and possibilities, the film sets stakes into seldom-explored territories of imagination. Simultaneously autobiography, detective-story, and a highly layered meditation on cultural abduction and socialism, it is a unique simulacra of "historical" cinema. As a reflexive examination of traditions and surfaces of "cinema as witness," the film functions as an intricate dissection of the very process of narrative and representation.

Marlon E. Fuentes is a Philippine-born filmmaker and photographer based in Los Angeles, California. His work has been shown in over 60 individual and group exhibitions in the last two decades in Asia, Europe, and the U.S., most recently at the Museum of Modern Art and the Guggenheim Museum in New York. He is represented in such collections as the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American Art, the National Museum of American History, the Houston Museum of Fine arts, the Library of Congress, and the Corcoran Gallery of Art. The bellringer of the town church is a young indio, torn between his duties to the Spanish state and as a Filipino. His conflicted mind, contemplates his own existence, is seen through different situations: experiencing an eclipse, an encounter with the Sto. Niño, and the death of a child in his town.

Angie’s seminar will about guiding young filmmakers or young people who want to enter the film industry and how to do so. She will talk about her experiences working in the Hong Kong New Wave during the 80s, working in TV in the USA in the 90s and what she thinks about the filmmaking environment for young people now.

Maggie Lee is the Asia Head Reviewer for The Hollywood Reporter. She is also an associate curator for The Substation, programming for the independent Chinese films segment for S-Express - a touring festival of Asian short films. She worked for the editorial and programming sections of the Tokyo International Film Festival (Winds of Asia), the Shorts Shorts Film Festival Asia in Japan, the Hong Kong International Film Festival and the Hong Kong Film Archive.

Artist Statement:
Through this animation, we hope the audience will become aware of the importance of their living environment.

* Awards: Special Mention Award Animation Category 13th Hong Kong International Short Film and Video Awards

2) Variable / Hong Kong / 2007 / 7min / Wong Wai-kit / PG
Feeling tired? Performing different roles in front of differ¬ent people? Taking down the mask, I come to see… that the Self has been lost in the performance of its social roles.

Artist Statement:
The inspiration of this short film comes from Sichuan Opera “Face / Off”. Off stage, you and I have our daily routine. Behind the mask, can you even recognise me? Am I really me? This film is meant for self-mockery.

* Awards: Special Mention Award Open Category 13th Hong Kong International Short Film and Video Awards

Artist Statement:
Though Hong Kong is a society filled with problems, there is effort to seek solutions for them. With this film, I hope to convey this message, raise concern and the love for Hong Kong.

4) Merry X'mas / Hong Kong / 2007 / 24min / Au Man-kit, Jevons / PG
Gift exchanging is not a big issue for most people. However, the poor has to work hard to prepare for that. A little girl decides to collect paper from the streets for recycling to earn enough money for the gift exchange at her school. It is sad and heartbreaking. There are neither stunning scenes nor a sensational plot. The rights and wrongs, warmth and cold of the world are narrated simply from the little girl’s point of view.

Artist Statement:
I was inspired to write “Merry X’mas” by a girl who was driv¬ing a stroller with a pile of old cardboard papers rushing through the street. To me, the world of children is like a miniaturized adult world. I hope the audience will like this work and reflect upon society and their lives.

*Awards: Gold Award Open Category 13th Hong Kong International Short Film and Video Awards

5) The Hole / Hong Kong / 2007 / 2:47min / Leong Suet-yan, Cherry / PG
Once upon a time, Big Eye discovers a hole in the sky. He is curious about what lies behind this hole, but most people just do not care. Someone says it is a dangerous place. Someone says it is where God lives. Someone says it is a wonderland. Eventually Big Eye decides to go to this mysterious place to find the real answer.

Artist Statement:
Everyone has a hole in their hearts. There is always some¬thing that we have missed or long for throughout our lives, though we may not know exactly what is missing. Whether you would take action to find the answer or be content with reality depends on how you take the very first step. It seems to me that there are many different holes which I have to fill up at different stages.

6) Oú est la Sortie? / Hong Kong / 2007 / 29min / Jessey Tsang Tsui-Shan / PG
Traveling from one city to another, everyone is searching for something. France is always a popular country for the Mainland Chinese to stay and study. For someone from Hong Kong, Paris signifies romance. So what does Paris signify for a girl from Mainland China? “Où est la sortie?” is a story developed from the blog of the main actress, Zheng Fenghong. It is not just a story about a Chinese women's life in Paris, it is about the different people from the different cities drifting in the same city. They have their own stories and destinations. What will happen when these strangers meet?

After making several personal documentaries and experimental shorts, Jessey Tsang’s first narrative short “Lonely Planet” won the Silver Award at the Hong Kong Independent Short Film & Video Awards in 2004. Her first web work “All About My Ho Chung” explored new media forms by documenting the village life of her hometown in Sai Kung using video clips in an interactive interface. Her work consistently fuses fictional structures with true stories. She finished her second narrative short “Où est la sortie?” in 2007, based on a grant awarded by the Alliance Française in Hong Kong. Her feature “Lovers on the Road” is part of this year’s Opening films.

1) Summer / Taiwan / 2007 / 30:25min / Hsia Shao-yu / PG
On every surfing trip, Fei faithfully stays by the side of her boyfriend, Bang, on the beach. One day, Bang describes the thrilling sensation he feels on the surfing board, which tempts Fei and makes her want to try it herself. In the wave after wave of thrills, she seeks her very own “summer”…

Hsia Shao-Yu has worked in the film industry as an art director for movies, TV series and a director for music videos and short films. He was art director for “Betelnut Beauty”, “Blue Gate Crossing”, “Twenty Something Taipei”, “Love of May”, “La Melodie d’ Helene” and “Exit No. 6”. He has also directed music videos for numerous pop stars such as Shuna, Elva Hsiao, Tarcy Su, Stanley Huang, Jasmine Liang and Ho Siang-Ting. His other film “Kawaii” is one of the Opening films for this year’s Asian Film Symposium.

2) This Darling Life / Hong Kong / 2008 / 80min / Angie Chen / PG
“This Darling Life” is a journey in search of dog’s best friend that evolves into a discovery of the essences of life. Stripped of all pretences, the film is a naked piece that serves as a testimonial of love.

Artist Statement:
It is an alternative non-mainstream Hong Kong film that connects and excites people. A documentary that does not follow rules, it has a narrative, it is a poem. A dog movie it seems, yet it is really about people. Most interestingly, people are talking about it, especially after the Hong Kong Asian Film Screening in 2008.

The documentary opens up with the director’s feelings towards the slow torturous sickness and eventual death of her dog, Baby, her companion of 16 years. It meanders into a quest about life, death and love, unraveling her discovery of the jewels she finds along her path.
You might pour your heart out but it’s not sad. It’s like the spring dew, cleansing and rejuvenating. Difficult and reflective, but it’s also hilarious at times.

About The Substation
The Substation is Singapore's first independent contemporary arts centre; our mission is to:
-Nurture and challenge Singapore artists
-Provide an open space for artistic experimentation
-Promote interaction between diverse artists and audiences
-Facilitate critical dialogue in the arts
-Foster regional and international arts networks

We present a diverse range of artists, programmes and events: from traditionally trained dancers to local rock bands; established visual artists to young poets; publications to international short film festivals; experimental theatre to seminal conferences on Singapore arts and culture. As an arts space we want to be approachable, versatile and open to all kinds of arts and cultural practices; yet at the same time we want to challenge artists, and have a preference for work that takes risks and explores. We aim to support research and innovation in the arts, and to bring different artistic perspectives together in critical dialogue.

About Moving Images
Moving Images is the first year round programme in Singapore dedicated to independent and short films. A programme of The Substation, Moving Images is known for its diverse and innovative programming focusing on experimental films, shorts, and documentaries, nurturing local and Asian filmmakers and connecting them internationally.

We organize screenings, festivals, workshops, seminars and mentoring programmes, including events like the annual Asian Film Symposium, the youth filmmaking challenge Reel Revolution, and the only biennial international documentary festival in Singapore - the Singapore Indie Doc Fest, which alternates with the biennial Singapore Short Film Festival.